Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Describe The Worst Things That Have Ever Happened At A Family Function

group of people eating on picnic table
Lee Myungseong on Unsplash

Reddit user youngeuns asked: 'What's the worst thing that's happened at a family function you’ve been to?'

Make us preferred on Google

Ahhh, family.

Some we love, some we like, some... let's just say there are usually some family members we'd rather see far less of.


They're often the family members who create chaos wherever they go. Family events with them are rarely going to go smoothly.

But then sometimes everyone is on their best behavior and a family gathering stll goes horribly wrong.

Reddit user youngeuns asked:

"What's the worst thing that's happened at a family function you’ve been to?"

Near Death Experience

"Kid drowned at my mother’s birthday party."

"EMTs shocked him back to life. The whole thing lasted maybe 10 min."

"It was surreal."

~ pabodie

Reprehensible

"Grandma's funeral: my uncle, my grandma's disowned son, came to her viewing in jeans, polo shirt, with his weird wife & and her 'service' dog. My grandpa was so mad that he kicked my uncle out."

"My uncle then went to my grandparents' house and cleaned it out. It took a couple weeks to figure that out because my grandpa was in a nursing home at that point."

"My deadbeat uncle, who walked out on his five kids to marry a psychopath, literally stole from my grandpa during my grandma's funeral."

~ ts1985

That One Uncle

"My cousin was pregnant from a guy who she had only been dating for a few months, but he was a good guy."

"On Christmas Eve she invited him to our family gathering and when we were exchanging presents he grabbed a small box from the tree and was 2 seconds from getting down on one knee when that uncle jokingly says, 'god I hope you're not proposing!'."

"Everyone laughs and this poor guy is in a half bent knee/half standing pose and just looks up at that uncle and slowly powers through it and slowly gets down on one knee and proceeds to ask her if she'll marry him. She said yes and they're engaged, but it was one of the worst 45 seconds of my life."

~ Whimsy_Willow

Turkey Day

"Thanksgiving in the 1950s."

"My dad and my uncle got into a fist fight."

"They were both drunk."

~ Bitter_Prune9154

Surprise

"My dad threw an impromptu birthday party for himself while my mom was overseas—his birthday wasn't until the following month—just so he could introduce his affair partner (AP) to his family behind my mom's back."

"The thing about the AP was she had 'disappeared' in order to avoid a subpoena. My dad had told investigators when they were looking for her that he had no idea where she was and then brought her to this function two days later."

"My dad thought his family would welcome the AP which would force my mom to accept her as a part of our family. Apparently he wanted a whole sister wife scenario."

"For some reason, he didn't think my uncle—a working police detective—would turn him and his affair partner over to law enforcement."

"The spaghetti was good, though."

~ OkWeird80

Cheers 🥂

"Was at my now father-in-law’s wedding reception. They eloped and had a fancy dinner with the family."

"My now wife’s uncle tried to toast the couple several times but no one heard him. My father-in-law quiets his family and says, 'Uncle John is trying to say something'."

"Uncle John says 'to (father-in-law and his ex-wife’s name). Many happy returns'."

"This poor man had nailed it the few times he tried before, but boofed it when it counted."

~ Wafflestarship

For Odin!

"I remember when my brothers and cousins spent two summers building a viking ship and they took it out on a fjord when we had a family reunion.

"Only my brothers and cousins went out on it and after being chased by the Coast Guard, the ship eventually began leaking and it sank leaving them to be rescued by the Coast Guard. It only stayed afloat for an hour before it sunk."

"Luckily they only got slapped with a warning to not build another ship again."

~ Goddessviking86

Let Them Eat Cake

"My alcoholic uncle got so drunk at his own daughter's wedding that he pissed on the wedding cake in front of half the wedding party."

"He quit drinking after that."

~ matbigx

Shower Of Flowers

"At the end of my aunt’s open casket funeral service, I knocked down a floral spray and it dominoed the rest of the flowers around the casket and she was covered in floral arrangements."

~ FeelingSummer1968

Graduation

"It was a high school graduation party for my cousin. My two uncles got into a fist fight."

"Shirts were torn. They were both a bloody mess."

"Cops were called by the neighbors."

"They were both drunk. Party was shut down."

"They didn’t speak for years!"

~ sillylittlebean

Wedding Basher

"My brother-in-law went around telling everyone my sister's—his wife's make-up and dress made her look like a Las Vegas whore… at our other sister's wedding."

"This was before she had to go and stand up in front of a 100 people… she had normal make-up and a normal bridesmaid dress."

"So, not only was her husband embarrassing her to everyone (including strangers), she was genuinely embarrassed to stand up there because she thought she looked so awful."

"Didn’t matter what we told her, either. F’in douchebag. It made my blood boil!"

"It got worse too… my husband told me after the ceremony that he was berating her via text prior to it starting. How did my husband know that, you might ask."

"Her husband was friggin' using voice to text for all the guests sitting around him to hear his insults!"

~ ljd09

Relative Rumble

"Probably the 20 person drunken fist fight that only partially stopped when my grandpa had a heart attack."

"There was also the 20 person drunken fist fight at Halloween.... the one at 4th of July.... the one at Thanksgiving, but at least those had no heart attacks."

~ joleme

Thanksgiving Announcement

"Thanksgiving dinner going around the table sharing what we are thankful for. My brother gives thanks for his wife not kicking him out when she recently found out he had been having an affair."

"It was humiliating for her and embarrassing for the rest of us. For God’s sake, there were children at the table."

"We never went around for thanks at the dinner table again. The children are all adults now, and yes they do remember vividly."

"What the hell was he thinking?"

~ GoodFriday10

What's the most shocking thing you've seen at a family function?

More from Trending

Donald Trump; a Domino's Pizza location
Saul Loeb/Pool/AFP via Getty Images; Peter Dazeley/Getty Images

White House's Attempt To Piggyback Off Of A Domino's Pizza Meme Backfires Spectacularly—And The Jokes Are Delicious

The White House was mocked almost immediately after its social media team repurposed a tweet from Domino's Pizza to promote President Donald Trump and his administration.

The UK division for Domino's recently shared a viral post in which it declared something—namely its pizza—"starts with D and never disappoints."

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots of Josh Hawley and Anthony Fauci
Fox News

Josh Hawley Gets Brutal Reality Check After His Hot Take About People Who Plead The Fifth

Missouri Republican Senator Josh Hawley was given a reality check after claiming that Dr. Anthony Fauci isn't "honest" after he invoked the Fifth Amendment during a hearing on Wednesday about his handling of the COVID pandemic.

The move temporarily spared Fauci from answering questions that could have exposed him to allegations of lying under oath. Although former President Joe Biden granted him a pardon in early 2025, some Republicans who have pushed for years to pursue legal action against Fauci argued he could still face prosecution for any perjury committed during Wednesday's testimony.

Keep ReadingShow less
Eva Mendes; Ryan Gosling; Johnny Depp
Gotham/GC Images/Getty Images; Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images; Hoda Davaine/Red Sea International Film Festival/Getty Images

Eva Mendes Slams AI-Generated Image Of Husband Ryan Gosling And Johnny Depp—And We're Obsessed

Hitch and 2 Fast 2 Furious star Eva Mendes isn't going to let anything slide when it comes to husband Ryan Gosling's reputation, and she's not going to let AI slop go by undetected, either.

Last weekend was San Diego's giant annual Comic-Con, with big reveals about what to expect next in the entertainment industry, including Ryan Gosling's official casting as Ghost Rider in an upcoming Marvel film, which was announced during the MCU panel centered around Avengers: Doomsday in Hall H.

Keep ReadingShow less
Glen Hansard
Luciano Viti/Getty Images

Celebrity Tributes Come Pouring In For 'Once' Star Glen Hansard After His Tragic Death In Motorcycle Accident—And Fans Are Heartbroken

Irish musician and Oscar-winning performer Glen Hansard has tragically passed away at the age of 56 after a motorcycle accident in Dublin, Ireland.

Hansard was best known for the 2007 Oscar-winning film Once, which went on to win eight Tony Awards for its Broadway adaptation. He also received an Oscar for Best Original Song for his single "Falling Slowly."

Keep ReadingShow less
Keira Knightley; Donald Sutherland
Vanity Fair; Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty Images

Resurfaced Video Of Keira Knightley's 'Funny' Story About Working With Donald Sutherland Sparks Debate

Keira Knightley, despite having major roles in films like Pirates of the Caribbean, Atonement, and Pride & Prejudice, has spent most of her career operating under the radar when it comes to controversy.

That's changed now that a clip from an interview opposite Rosamund Pike for Vanity Fair resurfaced last weekend.

Keep ReadingShow less